Bill Belichick On Andrew Luck: 'He's Like A Sixth Receiver'

Bill Belichick

Elise Amendola / Associated Press

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick speaks outside the locker room after an NFL divisional playoff football game against the New England Patriots Saturday, Jan. 10, 2015, in Foxborough, Mass.

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick speaks outside the locker room after an NFL divisional playoff football game against the New England Patriots Saturday, Jan. 10, 2015, in Foxborough, Mass. (Elise Amendola / Associated Press)

Q: You guys recovered several of your own fumbles on Saturday. Does that speak to the team's toughness, especially Julian Edelman's recovery which seemed like it was one-on-five?

Belichick: I'd say the bottom line on all that is we have to do a much better job of taking care of the ball. We had really four potential turnovers – one interception and three fumbles that we could have lost. We just have to do a better job of taking care of all those balls. Yeah, it speaks to the toughness of getting in there and fighting for the ball and all that, but we have to have better ball security than that, period.

Q: You mentioned that the Colts have been getting good production out of their backs. It seems like Dan Herron has been a bigger part of their offense since the last matchup. What have you seen that's made him effective?

BB: I'd say he's done a great job of running; good balance, good toughness, good vision. [He's] made a lot of extra yards on his own. But I'd say the big thing has been how involved he's been in the passing game. That's been huge. I don't know, he might be like one of their most targeted guys or second most targets, whatever it is, in the playoffs. He's gotten a lot of balls. I think that's his role as three-down player: blitz pickup, passing game and obviously the running game. He's given them a big lift there.

Q: What do you feel Bryan Stork has brought to the team since he got in there in that Kansas City game? How does his potential lack of availability affect your plans in the game planning process?

BB: Yeah, I think Bryan has done a good job for us. We finished the game without him last week. If he wasn't available then we would be in a similar situation this week, whether it be the same or different, I don't really want to get into that. He's obviously done a good job for us and he's grown along the way.

Q: The first time you played Indianapolis it seemed like you did a good job containing Andrew Luck in the pocket. What kind of challenges does he present when he's on the move with his vision downfield?

BB: He's like a sixth receiver you have to cover. He can run, but again, if he extends the play then he has the ability to create big plays. We've seen him do that multiple times throughout his career already. The play he made against Denver where he kept the ball on about the nine, 10-yard line in the red area and ran it in for an easy touchdown – it was called back, but it was an easy touchdown. It's another guy you have to defend in the running game, the passing game in terms of his ability to scramble and make first-down yardage on possession-type downs. And he makes good decisions, so all those things are a problem: having to cover receivers longer and having to deal with his ability to run for yardage.

BB: Yeah, he's a big, strong guy that runs out of a lot of arm tackles and that type of thing. He's a lot faster than Roethlisberger, so he's much more of a threat to gain more yardage and gain it quicker. But, yeah, similar. Roethlisberger is, that guy is really hard to tackle. He's a really strong guy in the pocket. So is Luck, but they're both a problem.

Q: Has Indianapolis incorporated more zone-read and straight running plays with the quarterback, especially in the red area? It seems like he did the same kind of thing against Cleveland, as the play you referenced that was called back.

BB: Yeah, he's done it. We've definitely seen the play before from them. I wouldn't say that's a main part of their offense, like we saw from Miami, for example. It's something they do, but it's not something you're going to see 20 times a game, like other teams in the league do it like that, or more.

Q: The Colts are expected to have the same offensive line combination for the third straight game, the first time that's happened since the first three weeks of the season. As productive as they've been all season, how impressed are you with the way this combination has protected Luck?

BB: Yeah, well I mean they've done a good job. I think a lot of that is the function of the game: the way they play the game, the way they do it. They run the ball, they stay out of long-yardage, they get better production out of the running game, more play-action, those kind of things. That's all part of it too. When they've had to pass block then they've done a good job of that.

Q: A question about the leadership of the team. You beat them on their home field and you've got a slight edge in championship game experience. Can you talk about the leadership of guys like Tom Brady and Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater and Dont'a Hightower and Vince Wilfork in terms of how you guys can block out the noise and get to the finish line here?

BB: I think at this point really it's just about everybody doing their job. I don't think it really matters how many games you've played or how long you've been here. Some of us have been here a long time; some of us haven't. It's just about everybody doing their job and that's really what it is this time of year. I don't think the play Duron Harmon made last week you had to be a 15-year veteran to make that play. You just have to be a good player and do the right thing at the right time. I can certainly cite many other examples. Guys that have experience, they can draw on that, but they have to do a good job. I think we've seen plenty of experienced players play well and some not so well and some guys without experience play real well and some guys without experience play not so well all through the playoffs and every team. It's really about each one of us doing our job. I don't take anything for granted from anybody. It's a one-game season. They have a lot of good players; they have a lot of good coaches. They're working just as hard as we are. We have to find some way to out-perform them. I think that's the message for all of us.

Q: Last week your players talked so much about how focused they were and the job you did in keeping their minds on the task and how it helped they were repeatedly reminded that the Ravens had such success here. How is your challenge different in that you've had so much success against the Colts? How do you make sure your players don't get overconfident with that?

BB: I wouldn't say I agree with all the things you just said, but that aside, I don't think any game in the past really has much application to this one. It's all about the preparation and performance of the teams this week. That's really all we're focused on is how we can play our best football game of the year on Sunday night. That's what it is for all of us. So what happened some other year in some other game, I don't care about. I don't think it really matters. What matters is how the teams and how all of us – not just the teams, the coaches, all of us – how we perform this week. That's really all we'll be talking about.

Q: After watching the Colts-Broncos game, it seemed like Vontae Davis had another good game. Is there anything in particular about his game that makes it difficult to defeat him in coverage?

BB: Well, yeah, Davis is a good player. [He was] a high draft pick by Miami, a guy we've seen quite a bit of. He's got good length, he can run, he's got good toughness, tackles well. For a corner, he's got a physical style of play. I think he's pretty good at everything. He's good. He can force the run, can tackle, can run and play physical with the big receivers and the deep balls and has good quickness to match intermediate and underneath routes and tackles well. Again, there's not a lot of yardage after the catch. He does a good job for them. Really both their corners are bigger guys – [Greg] Toler too. They've got good size and good length out there. They mix in some press coverage and some Cover 2 where they roll up on the receivers. They do other things too; they're multiple defensively. You have to be ready for them in different spots. But they have a presence on the perimeter.

Q: Andrew Luck has more passing yardage in his first five postseason games than anyone else in history. Has he elevated his game in the playoffs or is it just a continuation of his game?

BB: Look, he's passed for a lot of yards in a lot of games. The guy is a really good quarterback. He can do everything that a top quarterback needs to do. He's got a great arm, throws the ball deep, reads coverages well, can make the intermediate throws. He has a nice touch on some of the shorter passes and to the backs and things like that, screens and all those kind of plays. He's mobile. He can run, he can stand in the pocket and shrug off tacklers. He's got good poise, good vision, handles the team well. He's a smart player in terms of game management and situational football. So I'd say all of those things are strengths. They're all assets. He does a good job of al lo fit. There are a lot of things about his game that are very good and hard to defend.